Reality is Perspective
by themis.ceres
Summary: Kara's relationship with Leoben and their daughter changes everything. Have no fear! This is a Kara/Lee ship..
1. Chapter 1

**Reality is Perspective: Chapter One **

Kara stood at the kitchen counter in the apartment she had begun to think of as home. She pretended that as she stood staring at the metal wall she was really looking out through a window into a big beautiful backyard. To raise a child the way they were just wasn't right, she needed a backyard. Suddenly she heard the familiar patter she slowly dropped behind the counter and listen to speed of their approach. As she held herself there as silently as possible her senses lit up on fire, every sound was amplified a thousand times. Letting a laugh mask the noise of her movement Kara dashed from her current hiding place around the counter to the doorway wall and waited.

"Dada!" Kara shook her head as she heard more giggles. "Mommy?" Kara held herself as still as possible and waited. Then patter of feet clearly split into two sets both of which Kara recognized. A heavy set that had changed since the beginning. In the beginning the evil in the steps was palatable and Kara had shivered every time she heard, now she heard hope. The smaller set barely touched the floor.

The heavy footsteps stopped outside the door frame while the gentle ones continued on in a more delicate and apprehensive state, as if somehow picking up on Kara's tension just on the other side of the wall. Kara counted out the steps.

Finally, in one swift sleek motion Kara moved forward and swept the girl off her feet. Twirling her around Kara smiled as the girl in her arms squealed in delight. She clutched to Kara in sheer hysterical glee. Kara leaned in and began to try and place kisses along her neck. The toddler began to squirm and laugh as Kara tried to balance the baby in her arms and keep up the silly torture. After a few moments both Kara and Kacey were out of breath, Kara slumped down the wall holding the giggling Kacey close. Kasey smiled at Kara and began petting her long hair.

"Hey baby girl."

She couldn't pinpoint exactly when things changed. It started small; it started after Kacey had fallen. She had taken his hand. In the hospital all she could think was that it was her fault that her daughter was lying in that hospital bed. She could feel her memories of her mother creeping up on her. When Leoben had finally moved from the couch to the chair at her side all she wanted was his forgiveness. So she took his hand.

When Kacey was released and come back with Kara it was the first time in almost six months that her thoughts had diverted from hate and killing. The first time in two years. Kara had taken Kacey under her wing for the next week, never allowing the girl to be out of her sight. Things had progressed from there.

She didn't look at sharp things and think how to hide them for later use. In turn Leoben began to trust her and started bringing things back with him. After almost two months Kara had a full set of dishes, silverware, tablemates, napkins, and fresh food. Along with all of Kacey's toys and clothes the bars at the door had been forgotten.

After three moths she had begun to laugh.

Five months after Kacey arrived there was a boom. People started screaming and there were the tell tale signs of fire fights going on. Kara scooped up her daughter and took her into her room, locking the door behind them. Leoben didn't come home that night. For a week Kacey couldn't stop asking where her father was. When he finally did return Kara was relieved. She spent that night crying on the couch.

Truth.

Adama had come.

She had stayed.

Deep down, in her subconscious she was happy Leoben had returned in one piece.

So she stopped looking back.


	2. To Galactica and Back

**Chapter 2: Galactica and Back Again**

It was over. He had apparently known it was over for sometime but now she knew too. They hadn't made love since he started putting on weight and since the rescue mission plan had been introduced and now completed he had begun pulling away. Anastasia Dualla was not stupid. She knew it was over. Yes, when she had no competition from other women or wars she had been able to win Lee but she had won in a lie. She had been attracted to the fiery Lee "Apollo" Adama but that's not what she had gotten. She had just Lee. If they had been back on Caprica and in a time of peace then she probably would have been able to keep him. They might have even had a family together. She hadn't lied when she said she had married him because he loved the fight but she had been on Galactica long enough to know what had happened to Caroline Adama.

Sighing, Dee placed her ring on Adama's desk. "Can you pass me the scissors sir?" The old man smiled sadly but did as she has asked.

As she stood at the mirror he came behind her. "No matter what ­­Petty Officer I will always be here for you." Dee smiled because it was what he wanted but inside her heart broke as she remembered another woman's broken heart but that time the word had been daughter.

No Dee steeled herself lifting the scissors up; she wasn't meant to be an Adama.

R/P

Sam looked around, searching the refugee's set up for a spark of blonde hair. She wasn't here. Looking down the hall Sam saw Admiral and Commander Adama walking side by side in discussion. Purposefully he made his way over to them. "Sirs." They exchanged a curious worried glance, their last meeting hadn't been so civil, looking past them Sam stated. "She's not here; she didn't make it off that frakking rock."

The Admiral place on hand on Sam's shoulder. "Don't worry son, we won't leave her behind. Lee was just showing me planes for a second sweep for survivors. We won't leave her behind." Sam nodded and headed back to his temporary quarters wishing to the Gods he could do more.

Bill took Lee back to his office. As soon as they sat down Lee undid his top bottom and placed his head between his knees. Placing a glass of ambrosia on the table Bill repeated his sentiments for Lee. "We will find her." Lee nodded and took the drink.

"I shouldn't feel like this. I shouldn't miss her this much. For gods sake I have a wife yet I feel like my heart's been torn out." Shaking his head Lee rubbed a hand over his eyes. When he sat back there was a small box sitting in between the two men.

"Dee came to see me this morning." The old man paused. "She knows it's over Lee. The anger and the weight were all symptoms but with the civilians back and the war on." His father left the sentence hanging. "Dee is a treasure" he started again "but she isn't yours anymore you were really hers." Lee sat back in shock and hated himself for feeling relieved.

"Dad." Bill stopped him with a hand on his knee.

"We'll find her son. We'll get her back."

R/P

Leoben would take Kacey out. Kara wasn't allowed that pleasure but she did have some of her own pleasures. Almost nine months after the shift he brought home paints. Kara had been counting the cracks in the ceiling when he placed then on the table. She just watched them at first but soon her fingers began to itch. With in weeks replications of paintings she had done in her old apartment adorned the walls with new ones coming ever day. She even taught Kacey how to use them and allowed the little girl to decorate her own room. And so Kara found herself 11 months with Kacey and 17 months with Leoben and creating a home for herself.

She had created a normal routine out of the unbelievably bizarre.

Kacey would wake up first and get Kara up. Kara would start breakfast while Kacey played with Leoben who would keep the energetic little girl out of Kara's hair until the meal was ready. Afterwards Leoben would clean up while Kara dressed Kacey and they would do something. Recently Kara had started tackling the monument of decorating the main walls in the living room. Kacey would work in a little corner copying her mother while Leoben tried to inspire her.

One night he brought home ambrosia. By the time he put down Kacey Kara had finished most of the bottle.

"So Leoben. That's an odd name; should I call you Leo or Ben?" He sat down on the chair across from her. Leaning towards the table that separated them he brought his hands together. She squirmed. "I'm going to call you Ben." She laughed. He studied her.

His model was the most tangibly religious. Watching the woman across from him he couldn't doubt that there was a god and a plan. The way she moved so graciously yet carelessly she was the epitome of beauty. Somehow this woman who claimed to be too rough and broken had, over the past year, turned this cell into a home and had accepted him and their daughter.

Suddenly she changed positions; swinging her legs over the side of the couch she mirrored his stance. "Tell me Ben. They're all gone aren't they." He lowered his head. "The old man came, Zeus in all his glory, didn't he? Yet I am still here, tell me why that is Ben?"

Leoben slid forward slightly in his seat. "Because one day you are going to come to me and you're going to say that you love me and you will kiss me." He reached out to tuck a piece of stray hair behind her ear. As she felt his hand brush against her cheek Kara closed her eyes.

Yes Adama had come yet she was still here. She didn't love Sam and Lee had married someone else. She had forgotten that Kacey wasn't fully human and that it mattered. He was touching her and she was painting again.

Her eyes fluttered open. "Leoben." He searched her eyes and found loneliness. In compulsion Leoben took hold of her face and found her lips. It was a fast gentle kiss and Kara felt a tear sneak down her cheek. "Yes Kara. They are gone." He held her back a little. "They're gone." She nodded slowly. It had been a year and she couldn't exactly remember what it was like living with out him. "They're gone." She repeated. He released her and rounded the table. Kara stood up and met him, grabbing his shirt, pulling him in close and hard. His hands tangled in her hair as their mouths met.

The old man stood in CIC. "Ready to jump?"

Gaeta looked up. "Ready sir."

He held the table. "Jump."

They tried to maneuver around the table and walls, ignoring the hisses that accompanied their misses.

As soon as Galactica had completed the jump Adama had hit the com. "Launch vipers."

The half of Galactica's vipers that hadn't stayed back with the fleet launched from the tubes to protect the raptors that were heading towards the surface.

"Kara." He breathed her name, gently. She paused.

"Tell me one thing" she pleaded.

He nodded.

"Sir, we've found a group of survivors in the forest and there are several life signs coming from the prison." Helo rocked back and forth in CIC. How they hell had they missed people in prison. He looked at Bill who nodded. Helo pressed the com.

"Racetrack you have a go. Get our people out." He could hear the determined change in her voice.

"Yes sir."

"Kacey, she's" she leaned back against the wall "she's really mine?"

Leoben leaned against her, bending his head till he was whispering in her ear. "Kara, Kara, Kara, you already know the answer to that." He claimed her mouth again and made sure the kiss was especially deep.

The marines unloaded, guns already sweeping the area for Cylons. One group headed towards the trees and one towards the prison.

Kara hurriedly unbuttoned his shirt as he tore at her own top. Stripping in a ironically quick but gentle way Leoben reached up and pulled down the blankets.

"Sir the old detention center is this way." The corporal reached to his radio.

"Racetrack this is Alpha team we're still some ways away from the prison, any Cylon activity?"

"No sir, this place is dead. They must have abandoned as soon as we did."

Kara cried out in a tumult of passion what she hadn't felt in much too long. Sighing Leoben rolled off of her but not away. "I told you Kara." He traced patterns were her hip and stomach joined. "One day Kara, I knew one day would come to me."

The marines broke down the door all senses tingling with anticipation. Cylons wouldn't just leave people to starve would they? Suddenly a radio crackled to life. "Sir the other rescue party just got back. We're going to fly closer to where you are, hopefully that will speed up the ETA."

The corporal nodded. "Copy that Racetrack."

Kacey was crying. Kara raised herself from an almost asleep stupor. Looking over her shoulder she saw Leoben was fading fast. Shaking him gently she began to find her clothes. "Leoben!" He sat up. "Yeah." Kara pulled on her pants. "Kacey's crying." Straining he heard it too and began to search for his own clothes.

The marines followed the life sign detector till they came to a door that was guarded by a huge iron gate. There wasn't a lock. Kicking down the inside door they broke into the apartment.

Kara had reached Kacey's door when she heard the door a floor above being kicked in. "Shit." Leoben stopped short in the hallway changing his trajectory. He saw the Colonial uniform before they saw him. Kara opened the door to her daughter's room and saw Kacey crying in the corner.

Moving quickly, she picked up her daughter and crossed the room to change her clothes.

"Honey you have to stop crying."

Kacey hiccupped. "But it's so loud mommy." The tears stopped.

Kara nodded. "I know sweetie, I know. Listen to me though, okay?" She held her daughters head in her hands. She nodded. "There are bad people out there, they are called Cylons. They don't like us so we have to hide for a little bit. You understand?" Her daughter nodded slowly. "Okay, let's get you changed." She began working quickly and systematically.

From the corner of his eye the corporal saw a person; he motioned for his men to stay quiet as they quickly moved down the stairs. He heard one of his men whisper, "Holy frak." Following the man's gaze he recognized the man around the corner as the cylon Leoben. Keeping his movement short he told the men to fire when they had a shot.

Just as Kara was almost done the sound of machine guns cute through the air. Unable to keep a scream back she left her daughter to run to the living room.

The corporal held his hand up. The men stopped. A woman had screamed. Out of one of the rooms they hadn't noticed a blonde streak came running. Corporal held his hand to hold the fire.

Kara knelt down over the bleeding dieing body of her captor. The cylon she had come to see as human. Crying and sobbing she held her hands over his chest. A chest that was riddled with bullets. As he began to raise a hand up she grabbed his lapels. "You can't do this!" She screamed. "You can't just leave me alone here!" He tucked her long, soft, blonde hair behind her ears. "She's yours too! You can't" her wild cries were drowned out by her sobs. Leoben smiled gently.

"Kara." It was just a whisper but she heard it.

Sniffling she nodded. "Hey there." She tried to smile.

He smiled, admiring her strength. "Kara, let me" he coughed and blood spittled his chin. Kara bit her lower lip as new tears formed. "It's too late" he gasped in a breath "Just, watch out for her."

Kara nodding biting hard into her lip. "Okay."

Knowing she would keep her word Leoben sighed and allowed himself to drift off into the black. Kara closed his eyes and began sobbing a new.

The marines continued their way down the stair, keeping their weapons pointed at the dead man and crying woman. Then his radio came on. "Corporal this is Racetrack, we have to go, what's your ETA?"

Kara hick-uped and swerved around. Racetrack. Taking in the appearance of the men her fogged mind remembered marines. "Corporal?"

The men lowered his weapon slightly. "Starbuck?"

"Damn right." She whispered.

"What the hell is going on here?"

She shook her head. "Not now corporal. Did I hear you have to go?"

"Yes ma'am. The old man upped a second rescue mission and well, here we are." Kara nodded. "Are alone here?"

Kara shook her head. "No, uh, my daughter. She's in the other room." She backed away from Leoben's body towards Kacey's room. The marines all exchanged looks.

Starbuck had a daughter?


	3. Consequences

**Chapter 3: Consequences**

Twenty minutes later they had arrived back at Galactica. As Kara nervously stepped off the Raptor the first thing she saw was the Old Man and the next thing she knew he had his arms around her. "Kara" Even as he just breathed the word tears sprung to her eyes.

Keeping on arm around Kasey she managed to wrap the other around him. "Sir."

"It's good to have you back Starbuck." He held her out, at half an arm's distance. "You've lost weight." She shrugged. "And who is this?" He reached out to tickled the toddler under her chin.

Kara swallowed. "My daughter."

He dropped her arms. "What?"

Sam chose that time to run over and envelop her in a wild hug though out which she maintained eye contact with the Admiral. His eyes seemed blank as he turned towards Lee and motioned for him to come but when he turned back Kara saw the warmth had returned to her commanders eyes. As Sam tightened his grip towards painful Kara moved her glance to Lee. With his arms crossed and his bow looking permanently furrowed he still looked as handsome as she had remembered. Looking him straight in the eye for the first time in too long and allowing a small smile to show as she accepted what she saw there: concern, hope, love, and Kara nodded. Lee's eyebrows uncrossed a little and Kara was glad she could relieve some of his burden. Nodding back he uncrossed his arms and touched his father's arm motioning they should leave. As Kara watched her two favorite and most trusted man walked away tears came to her eyes.

Someone was shouting in her ear. "Kara! Kara! It's okay your home, your safe now. Gods, I missed you!" Sam pulled her in for another tight hug. Out of nowhere Kara felt a boiling anger come over her.

"Let go of me."

"What?"

She took a step back. "Let go of me."

Sam allowed a look of confusion and anger to cross over his face. "What happened down there?"

She shook her head. "Nothing."

Sam grabbed her by the shoulders. "What the hell happened down there?"

"You left me behind so I did what I had to do to stay alive, to keep my daughter alive." Kara shouted at Sam in the middle of the busy hanger deck. Everyone looked up. Every mechanic, pilot and refugee was looking at them. Even Lee and Bill turned when they heard Kara shouting in a half hysterical manner.

"What Kara? Just tell me what you had to do?" Kara shook her head and backed away. In the process Sam pulled her jacket, revealing a large red spot on Kara's neck. "Gods. What did you all him to do Kara?" The panic was gone from his voice and Kara was worried by the deadly calm he portrayed. "What did he tell you? Because Kara, Kara you know it wasn't real?! This thing" he gestured at Kacey "she's not yours, not a human you know that right?" Sam paced, running a hand through his hair. "Gods, I will frakking kill him."

A fire of rage ignited in Kara. "No you won't. If you lay a hand on him or my daughter I will kill you." The strength of her message was shortened somewhat by the touch of emotion that accompanied her voice.

Sam roughly grabbed his wife by the face. "What! What happened to you Kara?! What happened down there? What did you have to do, did you have to fall in love with him Kara, for gods sake she's not even human!"

And there in the middle of the packed but deadly quiet hanger bay the strongest woman in the fleet felt tears run down her cheeks and watched tears drop off her nose.

Thinking he had made some progress Sam roughly pulled her into a hug. "By the gods Kara I promise this will be alright."

And something inside her snapped. What had happened to her was not something she could just make alright. She had lived for over a year as a captive of the enemy. An enemy who physiologically broke her down and forced her to live a different life, one to which she would never have chosen. Her mind, emotions and body and been turned against her to the point where she gave in. And there is no sound that of a hurt person reopening the wound that damaged them the most so as Kara relived all the memories of her captivity from the beginning when she routinely killed Leoben to the end when she made love to him and only ran because he died protecting her and their child a hollow, dead, scream left her throat. It was wrenched from her heart and cut across the room in one swift motion and all the pain, rage, and emptiness she felt echoed in Galactica.

Sam dropped his arms and stared at the woman he thought he knew and loved with hurt, betrayal and confusion on his face. Had he ever really known her? Had he ever really loved her? Completely lost he looked around wildly for a medic.

Instead he came face to face with the man who _had_ known his wife, who _had_ love his wife.

Unable to do anything else Sam backed away to let Lee in.

Kneeling by her side Lee gently reached out the cupped her cheek.


End file.
